• In the first three quarters, the number of tourists increased by 29%; in the third quarter, the proportion of tourists making up total international travelers reached its peak at 52.1%.• In the first three quarters, the proportion of air travel in all travel rose by 26% while travel by land decreased by 5%.• In the first three quarters, the number of persons arriving at any of Georgia’s three international airports (Batumi, Kutaisi, and Tbilisi) increased by 47%.• From January to August, payments made by foreign credit cards in Georgia increased by 33% and payments made by Georgian credit cards in foreign countries increased by 37%.

This newsletter examines the trends of tourists and international travelers for the first three quarters of 2017. According to the Georgian National Tourism Administration (GNTA), international travelers are broken down into the following categories:

Source: Georgian National Tourism Administration

According to the data from the first three quarters of 2017, the number of international travelers in Georgia reached 5,822,835 including 2,783,594 tourists (48% of total international travelers), 1,299,925 transit visitors (22%), and 1,739,316 one-day visitors (30%). Compared to the first three quarters of 2016, in the first three quarters of 2017, the total amount of international travelers increased by 19%. During the same period, the number of tourists increased by 29%.

In 2017, most tourists visited Georgia in August (573,368 tourists) which is a 27% increase compared to the corresponding period of 2016. In February, on the other hand, the lowest amount of tourists was recorded (139,918) which is a 16% increase compared to February 2016.

According to the first three quarters of 2017, the top five countries from which most tourists visited Georgia are as follows: Russia (726,636; 26% of total number of tourists); Azerbaijan (355,486; 13%); Armenia (306,223; 11%); Turkey (277,340; 10%); and Iran (257,820; 9%). In the same period, from Europe, (other than the already mentioned countries above) most tourists visited Georgia from the following countries: Ukraine, Poland, and Germany. It must be noted that the share of these countries in the total number of tourists is fairly small (5%, 2%, and 1% respectively).

Notably, the majority of tourists visiting Georgia (approximately 90%) came from 20 countries. Since 2015, the share of tourists from these 20 countries in the total number of tourists dropped though has a negative trend.

Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia

Source: Georgian National Tourism Administration

The positive trend in the number of tourists visiting Georgia in the first nine months of 2017 has mainly been caused by an increased number of tourists from Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Saudi Arabia. In 2017, traditionally, most tourists visited Georgia in the third quarter (1,473,600 tourists). Their share in international travelers was 52.1%. In this period, compared to the third quarter of 2016, of the 29% increase in the number of tourists, 86% comprises Russia (38%), Iran (23%), Armenia (10%), Saudi Arabia (9%), and Azerbaijan (6%). At the same time, according to the data of the third quarter of 2017, the biggest increases were from Saudi Arabia (174%), Iran (84%), Russia (38%), the UK (36%), and Germany (35%).

Source: Georgian National Tourism Administration

Building and maintaining good airports is crucial to tourism development. In the first three quarters of 2016, 17% of the total number of travelers entered Georgia using air travel. This proportion increased to 22% in 2017.

During the first three quarters of 2017, Tbilisi International Airport received the majority of international travelers (76%), followed by Batumi (12%) and Kutaisi (10%). Compared to the first three quarters of 2016, in 2017 the number of travelers arriving at Batumi airport increased by 8%. For Kutaisi airport, the same indicator increased by 21% and for Tbilisi decreased by 2.8%.

Revenue from international tourism1 increased in the first and second quarters of 2017. In the first quarter, this revenue amounted to USD 434 million which is a 23% rise compared to the corresponding period of 2016. This amounted to USD 658 million in the second quarter of 2017 which is a 28% rise compared to the corresponding period of 2016.

Source: Georgian National Tourism Administration

Source: National Bank of Georgia

Payments made by foreign credit cards in Georgia are characterized by increasing trend. Especially high volume of these cards was amounted in 2015 (GEL 1.46 bln) and 2016 (GEL 1.62 bln). According to the data from three quarters of 2017, the volume of these payments is GEL 1.65 billion which is already higher (by GEL 29 mln) compared to 2016.

In January-September 2017, compared to the corresponding period of 2016, payments made by foreign credit cards in Georgia increased by 39% (GEL 461 mln). During this period, these payments increased most significantly in January (37%), July (38%) and September (76%).

1Revenue from tourism is the value of goods and services purchased by non-residents in Georgia excluding the staff of foreign embassies and consulates. The revenue also excludes the costs of arrival and departure from Georgia. Tourist expenses are calculated using a study conducted on border checkpoints. Visitors complete a survey in which he/she states the purpose of the visit and information about expenses in the country.

Source: National Statistics Office of Georgia *Preliminary Data National Bank of Georgia Ministry of Finance of Georgia